NOVEL NEXT Chapter 414: 360
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"Master, may I ask you something?" Sun Wukong asked.
"You and I are master and disciple; there's no need for such formality." Ancestral Master Subhuti flicked his horsetail whisk and, lifting his teacup, drank the tea brewed by Sun Wukong leisurely.
"Master, I've been to the Northern Jambu Continent and met the Great Emperor Zhenwu. I heard about Yang Erlang at the Guan River Mouth. Rumors say he also mastered the 72 Transformations. Was he taught by you, Master?" Sun Wukong inquired, voicing his curiosity.
Subhuti stroked his beard and flicked his horsetail whisk again, saying, "That is true, although he isn't as smart as you."
A glimmer of Yuanguang emerged in the void, and someone in search of immortals arrived at the front of Square Inch Mountain, outside the Three Star Cave.
It was none other than:
A figure of handsome looks and a stately manner, with ears hanging down to his shoulders and a glint in his eyes.
Although dressed in coarse hemp cloth, his noble aura was undiminished.
It was indeed Yang Erlang!
But he seemed to be merely a teenager, about fourteen or fifteen years old.
Like Sun Wukong when he sought discipleship, the young Erlang was brought into the Three Star Cave by an attendant, requesting spells from the patriarch, but initially, he was quite impatient. Aside from following his fellow disciples in odd jobs, he learned from them the skills of martial arts and spells. As long as they were willing to teach, he learned.
If they were reluctant, he would pester them until they grew so weary that they had no choice but to teach him.
Because at that time, Erlang was single-mindedly determined to learn martial skills to rescue his mother, his heart was anxious for quick success and he couldn't concentrate on the books in the scriptorium.
As for books unrelated to spells and martial skills, young Erlang refused to read them or would merely glance at them before putting them aside.
So it went on.
One year, two years, three years···
Ten years, twenty years, thirty years···
Until the fortieth year when Erlang finally calmed down and had some success in qi cultivation, but with only a minimal amount of skill, he couldn't split Mount Peach. Thus, he went directly to the patriarch's room in the middle of the night.
At that time, the patriarch did not knock thrice on Erlang's head but rather, Erlang couldn't bear it and went to the patriarch's room himself. He kneeled until dawn, hoping to move his master.
Eventually, the patriarch sighed, sat up, and said, "Erlang, you are intelligent and gifted. If you were to calm your heart, you could certainly enjoy the fruits of a Heavenly Immortal. Why be so impatient?"
"My mother is oppressed; I cannot help but be anxious." Erlang prostrated himself and beseeched, "Please teach me some true skills, Master."
"There, there. I will impart to you the way of the Heavenly Immortals, infuse you with a Divine Body, and solidify your True Spirit. Whether you can become a Heavenly Immortal will depend on whether you can calm your heart in the future." After saying this, the patriarch gave Erlang the secret spell and further asked, "I have two sets of skills here, one is the Heavenly Count, consisting of 36 transformations, and the other is the Earthly Sha Skills, with 72 transformations. Which do you wish to learn?"
Erlang prostrated himself and asked, "Master, what is the use of these two skills?"
"The way you cultivate steals the essence of heaven and earth and delves into the mysteries of the sun and the moon. Once successful, heaven and earth cannot contain you, and every five hundred years, a disaster will come to give you a chance to avoid three calamities."
"Of course, if you find another way to achieve the status of a Heavenly Immortal in the future, the severity of these three disasters will not afflict you. And any one of these two types of skills will enable you to perform transformations."
Erlang didn't hesitate, "Then I choose the one with more, for more transformations."
The patriarch taught Erlang the 72 transformations and then said, "I've passed on the great way and divine skills to you; now go down the mountain."
Erlang prostrated himself and said, "I have been an unfilial disciple. Once I rescue my mother, I shall serve by Master's side."
The patriarch, however, shook his head, "From today onward, you are not allowed to say you are my disciple, nor will I acknowledge you."
"Master!"
Erlang teared up, "Why is that? Is Master intending to expel me from the school?"
The patriarch shook his head again, "Not at all, you were never part of my sect to begin with. What is there to expel?"
Erlang was disbelieving.
The patriarch picked up the disciplinary ruler beside him and struck Erlang's crown fiercely.
Boom!
Erlang felt the world spin. When he awoke, those nondescript robes had reverted back to coarse hemp cloth—
The Yuanguang projection up to this point was dispersed by Patriarch Bodhi, who then sighed and said, "In terms of cultivation aptitude, he is no less than you, but he is different from you."
"You have great fortune; even without that mysterious object, you would have spent three to five hundred years in Huaguo Mountain to open your mind to the Tao, and then traveled the human world for many years, seeing through the mundane, strengthening your resolve on the path."
"But he was born in the human realm, with a heart set on saving his mother. Though he also acted chivalrously along the way, he took it for granted, being a player within the game, unaware of the reasons."
"He came to my Square Inch Mountain because he sensed his filial piety, and thus he was fated to enter."
"At first, seeing his impatience, I didn't give him a dharma name, hoping he would first calm down, but unfortunately—"
Patriarch Bodhi did not continue, but Sun Wukong already understood that to Erlang, the matter of saving his mother had become an obsession, and he could never calm his heart. Rеаd аhеаd аnd gеt updаtеs by visiting М^VLЕМРYR.
If the patriarch had not imparted the spell, the situation might even have worsened.
"Now, he has already rescued his mother; that obsession has dissipated, and he has understood the intentions of the Jade Emperor, accepting his reward and becoming an immortal." The patriarch sighed, "It can be considered a virtuous and complete accomplishment."
"An immortal?"
Sun Wukong was somewhat puzzled, "He has not achieved the status of a Heavenly Immortal?"
The patriarch laughed, "Although I have passed on the teachings, perfecting them requires unity of body and mind, which he could not achieve. Even though he acknowledges the Jade Emperor, he's still 'too proud to recognize his celestial kin, too arrogant to reside in Guan River as a god,' according to your explanation of a true spirit's travels—averse to admitting his true feelings."
"Every time the Jade Emperor summons him, he accepts with alacrity and, after completing his missions, he joyously goes to receive his rewards. Then, in front of others, he pretends to be too proud to care."